MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Catalogue retailer Argos posted its best Christmas results in a decade with the help of video games. The retailer called out gaming – in particular Xbox One and PS4 – for helping it increase like-for-like sales by 3.6 per cent. Sales of tablets and white goods also improved significantly. The …
Read More »‘CES can offer game giants an audience that E3 cannot’
The biggest names in games are returning to CES to show off products to the ‘entire tech ecosystem,’ says the event’s organisers. The Consumer Electronics Show used to be a home for the games industry before the launch of E3 in 1995. But this year saw more video game companies …
Read More »Retailers unfazed by empty release schedule
UK game stores have played down concerns over a quiet start to 2014. The first six weeks of 2014 is notable for a significant lack of titles, prompting worries that the good momentum from the end of last year could slow. However, buyers at top UK stores have told MCV …
Read More »The rise of DayZ – how selling games is changing
The practice of selling games has changed forever. Our industry is built on a tried and tested business model – developers make games, publishers market them and retailers sell them. But digital marketplaces are changing this. Platforms like Steam in particular are providing an alternative for developers by offering a …
Read More »Dev warns that Steam sales "screw your fans"
With very exceptions, gamers are used to new titles launching at their highest price point and then gradually decreasing over time. But one developer has argued that the entire games pricing model needs revising, particularly when it comes to digital titles. A bargain rack for physical retail makes perfect sense …
Read More »Video games star in strong Argos results
Argos says sales of electricals – includingvideo games, tablets, TVs and white goods – helped it deliver a strong financial quarter, as its parent company appoints a new chief exec. Total sales grew by 3.6 per cent to 1.808m while like-for-like sales increased by 3.8 per centfor the 18 weeks …
Read More »The console fitness revolution goes mobile
In 2008, Nintendo released the highly successful Wii Fit – a fitness title that went on to sell 23m units and started a series that has sold over 44m copies to date. Suddenly an influx of competitive products emerged from the biggest names in gaming such as EA and Ubisoft. …
Read More »UKIE disputes Government’s games industry shrinkage claims
The UK game industry shrunk by nearly half in 2012 compared to 2011, according to figures released by the department for Culture, Media and Sport. The economic contribution in 2012 (or gross value added) was 540 million. During 2011 however, the industry was valued at 946 million. This means there …
Read More »UK games retail scores £600m haul in December
Video game consoles and software made 605.5m for the UK High Street last month, MCV can reveal. The figure is based on GfK Chart-Track reports. Software made265.4m alone but it was the console hardware market that saw the biggest spike, with over 1.25m games machines sold in the UK during …
Read More »Famed games box art illustrator Greg Martin passes away
Greg Martin, the man behind a huge number of classic 1990s video game covers, has passed away. Martin’s works include the likes of Adventure Island, Bonk’s Adventure, Pac-Man, Sonic CD, Aero The Acro-Bat and perhaps most famously Sonic the Hedgehogs 2 and 3. Greg was the exceptionally talented illustrator. He …
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